DA allots P16 M for cacao farming in Zamboanga

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Agriculture (DA) is allotting P16 million this year to boost cacao production in the Zamboanga Peninsula in line with efforts to make it the cacao capital in Mindanao.

The DA is set to distribute 450,000 cacao seedlings that will cover more than 900,000 hectares for the entire Region 9.

“The world demand for cacao and its products is increasing and we need to plant now, so eventually, we will become the Cacao Capital in Mindanao,” Cacao Industry cluster chairman Angelo Sunglao said.

“We will likely to have a blooming cacao industry here in the peninsula in the coming years,” said Region 9 High Value Crops coordinator Ana Aying added.

The world market has projected that cacao would be in demand for the production of cocoa butter and chocolate in the next five years.

It is also predicted that there would be a global shortage of one million metric tons of cacao by 2020.

In the Philippines alone, current production is not enough to meet the local demand of 30,000 MT yearly.

The DA aims to raise local production from 12,000 MT of dried cacao beans to 100,000 MT by 2020.

Majority of cacao production for the country come from Davao, Eastern Visayas, and Zamboanga Peninsula.

The DA and the Mindanao Development Authority (MINDA) are also in the process of adopting a .2 million Cacao Double-Up Program aimed at establishing a cacao nursery facility.

Four structures worth P1.3 million per facility will be established region-wide, two in Zamboanga del Norte and one facility each in Zamboanga City and Zamboanga del Sur.

The project aims to provide an opportunity for private partners, farmer cooperatives, local government units and the Regional Development Council to collaborate.